One of the more confounding dilemmas that clinicians face is when patients present with undifferentiated arthritis (UA). While these patients reportedly comprise the majority of those who come into rheumatology practices with recently developed arthritis, UA defies a more defined classification criteria and the lack of a more specific diagnosis leads to less clarity when it comes to treating the disease. Clinicians are subsequently torn between initiating treatment with methotrexate, in order to address symptoms and help inhibit progression of the disease, or foregoing treatment as reportedly upward of 50 percent of patients with UA have spontaneous remission.

Given the widespread occurrence of osteoarthritis and polypharmacy considerations, these authors emphasize a heightened awareness of OTC medications and assess the pros and cons of various prescription options for treating OA.

Given the progressive nature of Dupuytren’s contractures, this author provides a closer look at the diagnosis of the condition, reviews the literature on possible risk factors and offers insights on treatment modalities.

One of the most paralyzing fears that any clinician can face is the possibility of being in the middle of a malpractice lawsuit. In order to avoid this unpleasant scenario, this author emphasizes thorough documentation, sound patient confidentiality practices and important subtleties of communicating with one’s patients.

AS renders the spine more susceptible to fractures from minor trauma. Fractures in individuals with AS have the potential to cause significant morbidity and mortality. Therefore, it is increasingly important to be attentive for a history of acute back pain when one is evaluating trauma in a patient with AS. Indeed, there may be an acute spinal fracture that needs evaluation with either plain radiographs or CT.

Our roundtable panelists offer their take on the recent EULAR guidelines for managing osteoarthritis (OA) in the hand and provide pertinent pearls from their clinical experience in treating OA hand pain.